Exploring my heritage through the consumption of Italy's classic cuisine

Vino, Vino, Vino

It is widely known that a dream of mine is to work on a vineyard. I aspire to one day establish a career in wine sales, and I think there is no way to better know your product than to work hands on in production. Visiting a vineyard in Italy for a wine tasting was an amazing experience. The vineyard we visited is called Le Caniette, a family owned operation run by a 4th generation winemaker. The vineyard grows 4 varieties of grape for their winemaking, two varieties for the white: Passerina and Pecorino, and two varieties for the red: Montepulciano and Sangiovese. During the tour of the vineyard, we were given a run down of his processes surrounded by oak barrels of wine. The main lesson we walked away with is that the quality of the wine lies in the quality of the grapes and the vines themselves. The soil dictates the flavor.

We were lucky enough to be able to taste 4 different wines: 3 whites and 1 red. The first we tasted is called Lucrezia, and is made from the Passerina variety, the second is called Veronica, and is made from the Pecorino variety. The third white we tasted was also a Pecorino variety called Io Sono Gaia, and was classified as a DOCG, the highest classification of wine in Italy. The last wine we tasted was a Rosso Piceno called Morellone, made from 70% Montepulciano grapes and 30% Sangiovese grapes. Usually being one who prefers white wine over red, I must say that my gripe with red wine has ended after tasting the wines in Italy. The complexity of the flavors and the warm spicy notes made it very hard to dislike. It was impossible to walk away without purchasing two bottles for myself, which I will greedily hoard at my apartment when I leave this paradise.